Laura Kelly

Democratic Platform

Democrats support progressive taxation, with higher rates on top earners and corporations to fund public investment. The party favors raising the minimum wage, strengthening unions, and expanding worker protections. Democrats generally support government investment in infrastructure, education, and social programs as drivers of broad economic growth.

Laura Kelly

Governor Kelly has presided over significant economic development wins for Kansas, including attracting major manufacturing and clean energy investments. She takes a pragmatic, bipartisan approach to economic development that has earned support from some business leaders despite her Democratic affiliation. She has focused on rebuilding Kansas's fiscal stability after her predecessor's tax-cutting experiment caused significant budget shortfalls.Source →

Republican Platform

Republicans favor lower taxes across income levels, with particular emphasis on cutting corporate and capital gains taxes to stimulate investment and job creation. The party supports deregulation, reduced government spending, and free market solutions over federal programs as the primary engine of prosperity.

Democratic Platform

Democrats support expanding access to affordable healthcare, including protecting the Affordable Care Act and moving toward a public option or expanded Medicare coverage. The party broadly favors government negotiation of prescription drug prices and opposes removing protections for pre-existing conditions.

Laura Kelly

Governor Kelly has repeatedly advocated for Kansas to accept federal Medicaid expansion funds under the Affordable Care Act, which would extend coverage to tens of thousands of uninsured Kansans. Republican-controlled legislatures have blocked expansion. She has backed legislation to lower prescription drug costs and improve access to mental health services in rural Kansas.Source →

Republican Platform

Republicans have generally sought to repeal or significantly reform the Affordable Care Act, favoring market-based solutions. The party supports expanding health savings accounts, increasing competition among insurers across state lines, and reducing federal mandates on coverage requirements.

Democratic Platform

Democrats generally support pathways to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, including DACA recipients, and favor comprehensive immigration reform. The party supports increased resources for legal immigration processing and a humanitarian approach to asylum seekers at the border.

Laura Kelly

Governor Kelly supports comprehensive federal immigration reform that addresses both border security and the status of long-term undocumented residents. She has highlighted the essential role of immigrant workers in Kansas's meat processing, agriculture, and dairy industries and has taken a pragmatic approach that acknowledges Kansas's economic dependence on immigrant labor.Source →

Republican Platform

Republicans prioritize border security and strict enforcement of existing immigration law. The party broadly supports completing physical border barriers, ending policies they view as incentivizing illegal entry, and reforming legal immigration to favor applicants with marketable skills.

Democratic Platform

Democrats favor robust federal investment in public K-12 education and higher education, along with policies to reduce or eliminate student loan debt. The party generally opposes using public funds for private school vouchers and supports universal pre-K and affordable childcare.

Laura Kelly

Governor Kelly has prioritized public education investment, overseeing significant increases in K-12 funding following years of underfunding. She has backed teacher pay increases and opposes diverting public school funds to private voucher programs. She has worked to address rural school funding challenges and expand early childhood education access.Source →

Republican Platform

Republicans support school choice, including voucher programs for private and religious schools, and local control over curriculum decisions. The party generally opposes federal education mandates and broadly supports parental rights in schooling. Many Republicans oppose student loan forgiveness as unfair to borrowers who repaid their loans.

Democratic Platform

Democrats broadly support stricter gun safety measures, including universal background checks, red flag laws, and restrictions on assault-style weapons and high-capacity magazines. The party frames these regulations as consistent with the Second Amendment and necessary to reduce mass shootings.

Laura Kelly

Governor Kelly supports background check improvements and red flag legislation but has operated in an environment where Republican legislative majorities have blocked most gun safety measures. She has taken a pragmatic approach, focusing on areas of bipartisan agreement while calling on the legislature to act on gun safety.Source →

Republican Platform

Republicans strongly defend Second Amendment rights and generally oppose new gun control legislation, arguing that existing laws should be enforced more effectively. The party emphasizes mental health intervention, the right to self-defense, and opposes what they view as infringement on law-abiding gun owners.

Democratic Platform

Democrats view climate change as an urgent crisis requiring immediate government action. The party supports transitioning to clean energy through federal investment and regulation, reducing carbon emissions across the economy, and meeting international climate commitments. Democrats generally oppose expanding fossil fuel development on public lands.

Laura Kelly

Governor Kelly has backed Kansas's growing wind and solar energy sectors as economic development opportunities, positioning Kansas as a clean energy leader in the Great Plains. She takes a pragmatic approach that supports clean energy investment while not antagonizing the state's oil and gas and agricultural interests.Source →

Republican Platform

Republicans emphasize American energy independence through domestic production of oil, gas, and coal alongside renewable development. Many in the party are skeptical of aggressive climate regulations they argue harm economic growth and jobs. Republicans generally prefer market-based energy solutions over government mandates and oppose restrictions that raise energy costs for families.

Democratic Platform

Democrats generally support a multilateral approach to foreign policy, emphasizing alliances, international institutions, and diplomacy as the first line of engagement. The party broadly supports maintaining NATO commitments, providing aid to democratic allies, and engaging international bodies to address shared challenges.

Laura Kelly

As governor, Kelly has engaged federal foreign policy debates through their effects on Kansas's export-dependent agricultural economy and the international trade relationships that determine prices for Kansas wheat, corn, and beef. She has backed federal trade policies that keep markets open for Kansas producers.Source →

Republican Platform

Republicans emphasize American sovereignty, a strong military as a deterrent, and bilateral relationships over multilateral institutions. The party broadly supports robust defense spending and is skeptical of international agreements they view as constraining American action or requiring open-ended foreign commitments.

Democratic Platform

Democrats oppose cuts to Social Security or Medicare benefits and support expanding both programs. The party generally favors raising the Social Security payroll tax cap on high earners to ensure long-term solvency and opposes any form of privatization.

Laura Kelly

Governor Kelly has publicly opposed federal proposals to cut Social Security or Medicare benefits for Kansas seniors. She has focused on providing cost-of-living relief for Kansas retirees on fixed incomes and has supported property tax relief measures that help seniors in Kansas's increasingly expensive urban markets.Source →

Republican Platform

Republicans support reforming Social Security and Medicare to ensure long-term fiscal solvency, which some in the party argue requires adjusting benefits or eligibility ages. The party opposes tax increases to fund the programs and some members have supported personal investment account options.

Democratic Platform

Democrats broadly support criminal justice reform, including reducing mandatory minimum sentences, addressing racial disparities in policing and incarceration, and investing in community-based alternatives. The party generally supports police accountability measures and evidence-based approaches to reducing recidivism.

Laura Kelly

Governor Kelly has signed legislation expanding access to expungement for certain nonviolent offenses and backed reentry programs that reduce recidivism. She has also focused on combating drug trafficking, particularly fentanyl and methamphetamine, as Kansas's primary criminal justice challenges, and has backed increased resources for rural law enforcement.Source →

Republican Platform

Republicans emphasize law and order, strong support for law enforcement, and tough penalties for crime. The party generally opposes reducing mandatory minimum sentences for violent offenses and supports prosecutors pursuing strong sentences. Republicans broadly oppose policies they view as undermining police authority or creating leniency for criminals.